If You See Him
by EtrnlPsyche
Summary: Bella and Edward visit with their friends after a break up. AH/AU.


**_____AN: I think this is going to expand into something more but it won't be until I finish Memories and get most of the way through White Flag. I'll let you guys know as soon as I do. _**

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot, everything else belongs to the wonderful Mrs. Meyer.**_

* * *

_If You See Him, If You See Her_

Isabella Swan sat in the back corner booth in her favorite restaurant in downtown Seattle, keeping a close watch on the darkened double doors at the far end of the room. She glanced at her watch then back at the doors, sighing with relief as they opened and a blond figure appeared. The afternoon sun cast a slight halo around the curls of hair that always managed to look be in perfect disarray.

She slid out of the booth as he came closer and smiled at him as he stopped in front of her, pulling her into his arms.

"Hey darlin, how ya doin?" he said softly before stepping back to look in her eyes.

With a shrug, she was unable to hide the frown that tugged at her lips before she slid back into the booth. "Alright I guess," she muttered, tossing her long chocolate waves over her shoulder haphazardly. "How are you and the little woman?"

"Good, though she's not quite so little anymore."

"How about…"

Jasper Whitlock felt his heart breaking for the girl in front of him all over again as he watched her, struggling to ask how his friend was doing. "Bout the same as you," he replied encouragingly as he reached across the table and took her hand in his, giving it a squeeze. "What happened with you guys Bells?"

A bittersweet smirk pulled at her lips and her brown eyes locked with his, a thin sheen of tears blurring her vision. "I don't know. God Jazz, I still love him so much. I don't… I don't know what happened."

"Call him. I'm sure…"

"No… no…" she said emphatically shaking her head. "I can't. It still hurts too much. Just hearing his name… it's like its happening all over again. I can't handle that pain."

"But maybe…"

"No. Just let it go alright. I want to have lunch with a friend and that's what we're gonna do. No more talk about him alright."

With a resigned sigh, he nodded. "Yeah. No more talk about him.

* * *

"Well, Edward Masen, what in heavens name are you doin here?" Alice Whitlock grinned, her trademark toothy grin bringing a smile to his face. "Get in here. Give me a hug…"

Edward smiled and stepped over the threshold of Jasper and Alice's home, walking directly into the enthusiastic embrace of his best friend's wife and his ex's best friend. He closed his eyes momentarily before stepping away from her. "Hey Ali. How ya doin?"

"Super! Be a lot better when Jazzy gets back with my dill pickle chips and peanut butter," she laughed, patting the large obstacle that used to be referred to as her stomach, now it was more like a boulder.

"You're about to bust I believe," he laughed, following her into the living room, taking time to help ease her onto the sofa as he did so. "There ya go."

Alice watched him quietly. Her blue gray eyes taking in every single line on his face and the bright emerald of his eyes, offset sharply by the redness that surrounded them. "Better question is how are _you_?"

He shook his head and glanced around the room. It seemed everywhere he looked were pictures of he and Bella or Bella and Alice or just the entire freaking gang of them that used to be inseparable. Before he and Bella split up. Now they had their plans with her and their plans with him. "Look um, maybe I shouldn't have come here…"

"Nonsense," she said with a dismissive wave and a roll of her eyes. "You should call her, Eddie. See if you guys can work something out."

"What? There's nothing to work out. We aren't together anymore."

"But why? Seriously do you even know why you guys split up? Hell I've been convinced since day one you love each other more than Jazz and I love each other and that's a hell of a lot."

Edward watched as she fidgeted on the sofa, taking the bobby pins out of her short cropped ebony hair before putting them back in and taking them out again.

"Ugh… I need a damn haircut," she muttered. "Edward?"

He sighed. "I don't know. We just got up one morning and couldn't stop fighting."

"What were you fighting over?"

"Never having time for one another…" he murmured. "She was just as bad as I was. It doesn't matter how much you love someone if you never see them, Ali."

Alice frowned as she once again fiddled with the pins in her hair before finally tossing them across the room in a huff. "Call her Edward. I know she misses you just as much as you do her."

"I don't miss her," he replied, his voice absent of emotion.

"You can lie to me Edward, don't lie to yourself whatever you do."

* * *

Jasper held the door open for Bella then slung his arm around her shoulder. "Why don't you come back to the house? Alice is dying to see you."

"I saw her two days ago. I'll see her tomorrow. Just let it go Jazz. I'm fine alright."

He nodded. "Alright. I'll see ya around Bells. Look, um… if I see Edward…"

She flinched at the name and shook her head. "What I said stays between us Jasper. He doesn't need to know how I feel about him. It's just something I have to get over. Something that's gonna take some time."

"Alright then. See ya."

* * *

Alice leaned against the door frame as Edward walked to his car, each step more careless than the other. "Be careful driving home Eddie."

He smiled and waved over his shoulder.

"Look, I'm gonna see Bel…"

Edward stopped short and turned to look at her. "Don't talk to her about me Alice. If she hurts half as much as I do when it's brought up, don't do it. Give her time alright."

"You still love her Edward."

"Yeah. But that stays between us. Bye Ali."


End file.
